Author Tom Clancy Has Died

It it's with great sadness that we share reports that author Tom Clancy has died. It sounds like this news is unconfirmed -- officially anyway -- but multiple sites are reporting the news that the author has died at the age of 66. Clancy's biggest claim to fame is the surely the Jack Ryan series of novels, a number of which have been adapted to film over the years, with numerous A-list stars portraying the character, Alec Baldwin and Harrison Ford among them.

At this point, Clancy's website is barely loading, which is unsurprising given the reports, but from what I can tell there's been no official update posted there. However, Deadline says reports are coming in that the bestselling author has died. There's no mention of how, however I expect we'll be hearing more updates and details as information comes in. In the meantime, our thoughts and prayers go out to Clancy's friends and family in their time of loss.

UPDATE: NY Times says Clancy died in a hospital in Baltimore today. No cause of death provided yet.

From a fan perspective, I doubt I'm alone in not looking forward to having to call my father and break this news to him, as he was a big fan of Clancy's work -- particularly in the 90s -- which included a number of post-Cold War espionage thrillers. The author's biggest hits include The Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger and The Sum of All Fears, all of which were adapted to film, with Alec Baldwin playing Jack Ryan in Red October, Harrison Ford assuming the role in Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger, and Ben Affleck inheriting it for The Sum of All Fears. Star Trek star Chris Pine is set to take over the iconic role for Jack Ryan, which is due out this Christmas.

Between books, video games and movies, it seems Clancy has stayed active in recent years, as has his character Jack Ryan, who has appeared in Clancy's recent novels. The author published Threat Vector just last year, and there's a new Jack Ryan book due out later this year called Command Authority, which Clancy co-wrote with Mark Greaney.

Given his many publications, as well as the films and video games they inspired, there's no doubt that Clancy has left his mark on the industry. He won't soon be forgotten.

The video below takes a look at the upcoming Jack Ryan movie, and showcases a bit of the history of the character in film: